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Profit PROBE ORDERED INTO IRANIAN PRESIDENT RAISI’S DEATH IN HELICOPTER CRASH Tuesday, 21 May, 2024 I |12 Zil-Qadah, 1445
IRANIAN PRESIDENT RAISI'S FUNERAL PROCESSION TO TAKE PLACE TODAY
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TEHRAN
Rs 50.00 | Vol XIV No 321 I 36 Pages I Islamabad Edition
SUPREME LEADER KHAMENEI CONFIRMS MOHAMMAD MOKHBER AS INTERIM PRESIDENT
AGENCIES
RAN’s military chief of staff Mohammad Bagheri on Monday ordered a probe into the cause of a helicopter crash that killed President Ebrahim Raisi and his entourage. Bagheri ordered “a high-ranking committee to launch an investigation into the cause of the president’s helicopter crash” that took place on Sunday, the ISNA news agency reported. Raisi, a hardliner long seen as a potential successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in a helicopter crash in mountainous terrain near the Azerbaijan border, officials and state media said earlier in the day. The charred wreckage of the helicopter which crashed on Sunday carrying Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and six other passengers and crew was found early on Monday after an overnight search in blizzard conditions. Supreme Leader Khamenei, who holds ultimate power with a final say on foreign policy
TEHRAN
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian have died in a helicopter crash. The incident was confirmed on Monday by Vice President Mohsen Mansouri in
and Iran’s nuclear programme, said First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber would take over as interim president, the official IRNA news agency reported. “I announce five days of public mourning and offer my condolences to the dear people of Iran,” Khamenei said in a statement. Mokhber, like Raisi, is seen as close to Khamenei. Under Iran’s constitution, a new presi-
dential election must be held within 50 days. Footage from Iranian state television showed wreckage scattered on a foggy hillside, while separate images from IRNA showed Red Crescent workers carrying a covered body on a stretcher. All those aboard the helicopter were killed, a senior Iranian official had earlier told Reuters.
statements on social media and state television. “Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, East Azarbaijan Province’s Governor Malek Rahmati, and Mehdi Mousavi, the head of Raisi’s guard team, were also on board the crashed aircraft,” reported the Islamic Republic News
Agency (IRNA). The report added that Mohammad Ali Al-e-Hashem, the Supreme Leader’s representative in East Azerbaijan province, was also accompanying President Raisi and other officials.
PM urges Turkish firms to expand investment, relocate industries to Pakistan ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday invited Turkish companies to further expand their investment portfolio in Pakistan, also urging them to consider relocating their industrial units to the country. The prime minister, talking to Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who called on him here, said that the current level of bilateral trade was not commensurate with the existing potential. He emphasized to undertake concerted efforts for achieving the bilateral trade target of US$ 5 bil-
AGENCIES
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday slammed the country’s premium intelligence agency – the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) – saying it was “running the country” instead of following the law, as it heard a case about the disappearance of poet Ahmed Farhad. Farhad’s wife had filed a petition in the IHC, seeking the recovery of her husband, who went missing a week ago. Lawyers Iman Mazari and Hadi Ali Chatha represented the petitioner. The court was told that the ISI had denied having any information about Farhad’s whereabouts.
The case has sparked widespread outrage in the country, with many calling for the government to take action to recover Farhad and hold those responsible accountable. Farhad, a prominent poet and writer, is known for his progressive views and has been a vocal critic of the government and the establishment. Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, who is hearing the case, expressed frustration with the ISI’s response, saying that it was “not a simple matter” and that the agency was “running the country” instead of following the law. “You are sending messages on one hand and on the other saying the person is not with us,” Justice
Kayani said. “Are you going to run the country or follow the law?” The judge also criticised the ISI’s claim that it had no information about Farhad’s disappearance, saying that it was “not believable.” “You are saying that the person is not with you, but your registers at police stations show that many people have gone missing,” Justice Kayani said. “Then why are you not taking action?” The court stated that “sector commanders do not live on the moon… don’t turn them into kings… the country can run without them.” It questioned, “Who is the sector commander? He must be an 18-grade officer at maximum… and you have placed him in the sky.”
GOVT HAD PREVIOUSLY ASSURED IMF OF MAINTAINING POWER SECTOR'S CIRCULAR DEBT AT RS2.31TR PROFIT INP
The power sector’s circular debt has escalated to Rs2,635 billion as of January 2024. A report from the Power Division, highlights that despite significant hikes in power tariffs and fuel adjustments, circular debt continued to rise. From June 2023, when the debt stood at Rs2,310 billion,
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ciated President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s staunch advocacy for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and lasting peace in the Middle East. He stressed the urgency and importance of the realization of the two-state solution as the key to attainment of durable peace in the Middle East. The prime minister also reiterated his invitation to President Erdogan to undertake an early official visit to Pakistan for co-chairing with him the 7th meeting of High Level Strategic Cooperation Council. Both sides reaffirmed their strong and abiding support to each other on the core issues of national interest.
Power sector circular debt soars to Rs2.63tr
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lion in the next three years as already agreed by the leadership of the two brotherly countries. While underscoring the special bonds of brotherhood between Pakistan and Turkiye, the prime minister expressed satisfaction over the positive momentum in bilateral relationship. He reaffirmed Pakistan’s firm commitment to further expansion of bilateral cooperation, in all areas of mutual interest, including trade, investment, technology and defence. Regional and global developments, particularly the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza were also discussed in the meeting. Prime Minister Shehbaz appre-
IHC judge questions intelligence agency’s role in missing poet case ISLAMABAD
ISLAMABAD
STAFF REPORT
President Raisi dead; helicopter fully burned in fatal crash: Iranian govt NEWS DESK
Pakistan to observe one day of mourning
there has been an increase of Rs325 billion over the subsequent seven months. The report attributes this rise in circular debt partly to the poor performance and low collection rates by Distribution Companies (DISCOs). The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has urged Pakistan to reduce the circular debt in the power sector and to increase elec-
tricity and gas prices as part of the conditions for a new loan program. The Pakistani government had previously assured the IMF that it would maintain the power sector’s circular debt at Rs2.31 trillion. This commitment was discussed in detail before the Senate Standing Committee for Power, where Power Division officials confirmed that the debt was managed at Rs2.31 trillion as of June 2023.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif declared a day of mourning to pay tribute to the late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian, and other senior officials who tragically perished in a helicopter crash. “Pakistan will observe a day of mourning, and the flag will be flown at half-mast as a gesture of respect for President Raisi and his companions, and to show solidarity with our brotherly nation, Iran,” PM Shehbaz stated in a message on X, previously known as Twitter. “I along with the government and people of Pakistan extend our deepest condolences and sympathies to the Iranian nation on this terrible loss,” the premier said while praying for the martyred souls. The great Iranian nation will overcome this tragedy with customary courage,” the prime minister noted. Shehbaz’s remarks come as Iran’s Vice President Mohsen Mansouri Monday confirmed Raisi’s death in a statement on social media and on state television. President Raisi, along with Foreign Minister Amirabdollahian and other senior officials, were returning from an inauguration ceremony for a dam on Iran’s border with the Republic of Azerbaijan when their helicopter crashed in the Varzaqan region of East Azerbaijan province. The crash occurred amid heavy fog while flying through mountainous terrain on a Sunday afternoon. Among those onboard were East Azarbaijan Province’s Governor Malek Rahmati and Mehdi
Mousavi, the head of Raisi’s guard team. A large-scale search and rescue operation commenced in the foggy mountain area, eventually locating the wreckage on Monday morning. Meanwhile, President Asif Ali Zardari has also expressed “profound shock and sorrow” over the tragic accident. “Pakistan mourns the loss of a great friend […] may Allah Almighty bless his soul and grant patience and strength to his family and the people of Iran in this time of irreparable loss,” read a statement issued by the President House. The statement also said that the Iranian president “will be dearly missed and fondly remembered in Iran, Pakistan, and the Islamic World for his efforts to enhance relations with regional and Islamic countries.” Stressing that the deceased Iranian head of state “had a special place for Pakistan and its people,” Zardari recalled his commitment to strengthen bilateral relations between the neighbouring countries. “President Raisi will be dearly missed and fondly remembered in Iran, Pakistan, and the Islamic World ” the statement added while highlighting his the Iranian head of state’s support for Muslims especially the the Palestinian and Kashmiri people. Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari also expressed sorrow and conveyed condolences over the fatal crash. “I express my heartfelt condolences to the government and citizens of the Islamic Republic of Iran […] every Pakistani is saddened by this tragic incident and shares the grief of his Iranian brothers and sisters equally,” Bilawal said in a statement.